Demon
by 13Bishop
Summary: A protection spell goes wrong. Leaving Emma the target of a vengeful demon. SQ
1. Chapter 1

It wasn't even Halloween dammit. The Fairies said that's what they had to be ready for, yet here she was running from a very real demon who didn't seem to care that she was the Savior or the product of true love or any of the other things she'd had droned at her the last few years. Behind her there was a roar that vibrated the ground beneath her feet. She ran harder, trying to hold the bag still that was slapping at her hip.

Blue had wanted her to come out here. She'd insisted that the Savior needed to go to the well, say an incantation and pour in a potion to stop an invasion of demons they had prophesied. Emma was pretty sure now that was bullshit. Regina had warned her not to do this, but she'd been caught up by her parents unwavering trust in the fairies that she had no choice. She'd said the incantation correctly, Regina had made sure she knew every syllable when she knew she couldn't convince her to stay. But in true Storybrooke fashion things had gone to hell.

The ground shook harder and Emma tumbled, the contents of her bag scattering in the leaves and branches on the forest floor. Disembodied laughter floated through the woods. Around her a wall of thick black began to build, blocking her escape. A round container rolled to a stop beside her. It was ridiculous that she'd even brought it with her, but again, Regina had been there with advice as she shoved it into her hands

 _"You've got to be kidding me?"_

 _"Don't laugh Ms. Swan. It can be great protection, and if you insist on going alone, then this goes too."_

 _"I'm not the one who insisted, you know I don't want to go alone. Something just does't seem right about this."_

 _Regina glanced back over her shoulder at the group waiting just across the room. "No, it doesn't seem right. Just take it. I'm giving you two hours to do this before I call, and if you don't answer I'm coming out there."_

The woman was livid that the fairies had determined Emma must be the one to go alone. Now she looked at the blue container and snapped it up as the cloud began to coalesce.

Flipping open the spout, the Savior poured a haphazard ring of salt around her. The half shaped cloud, demon, whatever charged with a roar, coming up short when it tried to cross the line. A loud frustrated screech blasted her ears, and she covered them wincing. The half formed figure backed off and Emma dropped her hands, staring in shock, "Son of bitch."

It turned back to her coming closer. "Savior." The word was hissed and it echoed through the trees.

Emma didn't answer. A partial face formed and sneered. "Do you think this will stop me for long?"

The cloud drifted around the circle searching for a gap, studying her. "This is who was sent to summon me?"

"I was sent to stop you." Emma knew she shouldn't engage but couldn't help it.

It's laughter was loud and harsh. "Then you failed, and you are doomed."

Her jaw clenched but she didn't dare speak or move. She hadn't failed. She'd done everything she'd been instructed to do. Her tongue hadn't tripped over the strange words she needed to say, the potion had been added at the precise moment. Yet here she was trapped in a circle of salt. The cloud solidified a bit in front of her and the face was back.

"And why would someone as powerless as you try to stop me?"

"What I want to know is why you're here?" Emma knew she should shut her mouth, but she was safe for now.

"You summoned me." The demon pressed close against the barrier, slinking backward when it found no passage.

"I didn't."

"You certainly did not stop me."

No she hadn't, and she was confused as to why. "You are their Savior? How pathetic. Even with power, you are nothing."

Emma's hands twitched. The cloud swirled around her barrier, making her dizzy, and she shifted her eyes to the ground. "I'm more than nothing."

"So you believe." The cloud pressed again and she could feel the salt barrier strain but hold. "I know you, I know what you are. Abandoned and alone, trying to be something you cannot be."

"You know nothing about me." Laughter echoed around her again.

"I know everything. The moment you released me, I knew all. You are mine."

"I didn't release you!"

"I am free. That is all that matters." The half formed figure dissolved, faded around the salt ring, then seemed to come together again. "I can feel the souls here, the life. I will have them."

"You won't touch one soul here."

"Oh I will Savior. I will take everything, and everyone you love. It's mine now that I've been welcomed here."

"You're not welcome here." The black form backed away, then seemed to study her again.

"You're full of fear. Full of hate. Self loathing. You have no power, you are weak. A Savior who can't save herself, or those she claims to love."

Emma closed her fists tightly, feeling her fingernails dig into her palms. "You can't fight me on your own. You can barely use the simplest forms of magic. The salt may protect you for now, but the longer I'm free the stronger I become."

It seemed to be true. In the time she'd been standing in her protective little circle, the cloud was becoming more solid, seeming to take form for longer periods. Moving slowly she felt in her pockets for her phone, heart sinking when she came up empty. She had to find another way then.

She couldn't call for help, and she couldn't run. Fighting was an option, but she wasn't exactly confident in her own magical prowess at the moment. It was her last resort and Emma was pretty sure she hadn't reached that point yet. Watching the demon move around the clearing, she tried to remember everything Regina had told her about demons.

 _"There's no checklist on this Emma. One demon isn't the same as every other one. They have different strengths and weakness."_

 _"So it really is like Buffy?" Emma was confused and tired, and she didn't want to be sitting here getting a crash course in all things supernatural. She'd spent two hours chasing Pongo down by the docks and she could smell the cannery on her jacket._

 _Regina sighed, covering her eyes for a moment. "Fine yes Ms. Swan, just like Buffy if that is what would get you to pay attention."_

 _"Wait, you watched Buffy?" Emma knew it was the exact wrong thing to say when the woman threw up her hands and stomped out of the room toward her study._

 _She scrambled after her, finding her pouring a glass of cider in the corner. "Sorry. I'm just not understanding any of this."_

 _Regina looked like she was about to make a comeback that would most certainly sting, and would leave them not in any mood to work together, before she took a deep breath. She glared at Emma for a moment before making her way to a loveseat, almost slamming her glass onto the table in front of her._

 _Liquid sloshed out landing on the polished wood, and the older woman made no move to clean up the mess. Clasping her hands in front of her and lowering her head to stare between her feet, she took several more deep breaths. Emma crept further into the room, stopping at the end of the long coffee table._

 _Finally Regina raised her head to look at her again. Her eyes still held anger, but there was also worry, and something else the Savior couldn't quite define. She motioned to the chair across from her and Emma sat. "There are only a few things that seem to be universal. If you summon one, you have some control over it. If you can hold it until the sun rises then you could be able to defeat it. They will all test you. Get to the very core of every fear you've ever had and try to exploit it. It truly depends on it's strength. This isn't something to go into lightly, and I'm trying to make you see that."_

 _"I know. I'm sorry. I just don't understand why the fairies are so suddenly sure that our doom is just days away."_

 _Regina was shaking her head. "That swarm of mosquitos have no clue what they're doing half the time. But if we ignore it, then we could be in some trouble."_

 _Emma nodded, not liking their chances if anything like what the fairies we predicting made it's way into Storybrooke. "Ok, then start again. No more playing around. Though seriously, did you watch Buffy?"_

 _The woman let out a small choked laugh, then looked at her again. The anger was gone, but the worry, and that undefined look remained. "Go home Emma, we'll work on it again tomorrow."_

 _Emma looked about to protest and she held up a hand. "We're both tired, and you smell like you've been laying in rotted fish."_

 _She had the grace to blush, before trying to get another whiff of her jacket. It was there but it wasn't_ that _bad. Finally she nodded backing toward the door. "I'll call you in the morning. David's taking over at the station."_

 _"Very well."_

Laughter went through the clearing again, and her eyes came up to see a more solid figure on the other side of the barrier. "Alone, alone, alone. Poor little swan. You've been abandoned here to me. A sacrifice to protect themselves."

Emma clenched her teeth, keeping in the pained moan the words brought. It wasn't true, they hadn't sacrificed her, not this time. The demon grew more bold at her reaction pressing it's not quite there face against the barrier. "A means to an end."

She growled, and stepped forward watching the face begin to grin. Stopping short she looked down at the salt barrier. The toe of her boot was just at the line and she scooted back. "Nice try."

"You have no one to come to your aid Savior, or they would have been here by now."

"Who says I need someone to come to help me? Maybe I'm just waiting for you to slip up?" She could hear Regina's voice in her head calling her an idiot.

The face had become more disinct, white teeth rimmed with black shone at her through the malicious smile. "We shall see."

Just feet away her phone began to ring, rattling in the leaves it was hiding under, and she did groan a bit now. It was Regina, she could tell by the ringtone, and the demon swirled away from the barrier surrounding itself around the device. The thing's delighted laughter boomed across the clearing as it made it's way back to the Savior. "You have a companion then? Someone who's taken in the abandoned swan? Delightful."

Companion? Emma wasn't sure what Regina was. The mother to her son, her friend, her family, her undefined. But she didn't answer, she'd already been damn idiot enough, and this demon knew far too much about her already when she wasn't spouting out answers.

The demon's form swirled around the barrier pressing in, testing it's strength. She felt the pressure there, and her own magic responded, bleeding energy into the salt at her feet. The demon reacted, pulling back. "She will be mine. I will crush her."

Fear flooded her stomach. Keeping her face blank she watched as the cloud formed again, lurching toward her. Her phone rang again, and it wasn't Regina this time. It was her...Hook? He was easier to define. He was there, he was simple, and he wanted her. It should be enough, and yet she really didn't want him to be the one charging in, thinking he was her hero. She'd been her own hero for long enough, she didn't need another one. And he wasn't Regina, whatever she and her son's other mother were too each other, Hook didn't compare. Dammit why was she thinking about all this now!

"So many conflicts Savior. So many decisions. Maybe you're not so alone after all. It doesn't change the fact they betrayed you to me."

"I wasn't betrayed!" Taking deep breaths she glared at the now almost solid form in front of her.

"Then you meant to call for me."

"No." She had no idea what went wrong with the spell, but it wasn't something she actively did.

"It does not matter. Soon this place will be mine, and you will come to serve me." It pressed against the barrier again, and she felt her magic kick in, pushing back.

"I don't serve anyone, or anything."

"You can't keep me here Savior. You are stuck in your little circle and I am free to roam."

The demon gave her its half formed smile and retreated from her safe haven, making its way to the edge of the clearing. Emma panicked, knowing that if it left now the others would have no way of knowing it was free until it was too late. "You will stay here! I command it!"

It's movement stopped, and slowly it turned around. "You dare try to control me?"

"If you say I summoned you, then yes." _Emma you are an idiot._ "You aren't going anywhere."

It was laughing again, and she was getting tired of hearing it. "Are you actually trying to save this place? You are a prisoner here like everyone else, I could set you free."

Tempting, but Emma didn't feel like a prisoner. Was it frustrating that it took feats of magic just to cross the town line? Yes, but her family was here, and she would protect it and them with everything she had. "There's nothing you can offer me that would make me let you loose in this town."

"I'm sure that's not true Savior. I can offer many things."

It was back at the barrier pressing it's face against the invisible wall. The voice had turned lilting, seductive. "Love, desire, riches beyond your means. I can ensure your family never leaves you. Your son will always be loyal to you. That the one you desire is yours."

A shiver went down Emma's spine, "The people in this town would fall at your feet. You would rule all. You would want for nothing."

The barrier's power started to fade, and the demon pressed closer. "All you need to do is ask Savior, and all these things are yours."

She shuddered again at the thought. Stability, love, loyalty, everything she wanted as a child offered up to her in exchange for a few words. And none of it would be real. She couldn't look at them and know that they felt that way only because of some spell. She couldn't look at the one she desired, _Regina,_ and know that it wasn't real. In her chest a pressure built that she always associated with the magic she couldn't quite control. "No!"

There was a bright flash from the ring of salt at her feet and the demon was thrown back. It's body losing it's solidity and spreading out. A roar she felt in her bones filled the clearing as the cloud swirled. "They will all die, and you will watch! They will suffer for this Savior, and they will know it's because of you!"

The demon swirled toward her, surrounding the thin line she'd drawn, pressing in. "They will curse your name with their dying breath."

Emma's magic pressed back, holding it off, almost successfully forcing it away. She knew she could defeat this demon here and now, and the magic responded reaching out with tendrils of gold holding it in place. A howl of frustration and fear reached her ears. "You will leave. Go back to where ever it is you came from and never come here again."

It fought back, trying to break her hold but she wasn't letting go. "I command you to leave this world."

The demon roared, but Emma could feel it fading, becoming weaker. Her magic fought to make it small, make it powerless, to make it gone, and her magic was winning.

With her concentration solely on her enemy she barely registered the movement of black leather that came running through the trees, sword drawn. "Emma!"

Hook was headed straight for her, and behind him she could see others making their way into the clearing. "Hook no!"

Regina's voice was unmistakeable, and also too late. The pirate swung at the demon, his blade slicing at nothing, and his foot slid through the salt at her feet. The magic faltered, and Emma felt a surge of dark power that blew her and Hook from their feet. She landed hard on her back, and heard triumphant laughter. The black cloud reformed, and she scrambled to her feet trying to recall the magic that wasn't there.

She could hear the others yelling, trying to get into position to fight, but all she saw was the demon as it bore down. Dark claws, and gleaming teeth came for her and she held her hands up, begging the magic to come forward.

It was too fast. What felt like claws sank into Emma's shoulders and those gleaming teeth were headed straight for her throat when a blast of energy hit them both. The demon was ripped from her, and she collapsed to the ground again, looking up to see Regina now standing between her and a furious demon.

The magic flowed red from her hands, pulsing with power. Emma tried to get to her feet, to do something to help the other woman, but she had no energy left. Over Regina's shoulder she could see the sun rising, making its way between the trees. The demon put up one last fight as the sun's ray's hit, and then it just diminished.

The witch stood there for a moment, hands still raised but everything remained quiet. Emma blinked when she turned toward her. "Emma?"

Black crept into the Savior's vision and she didn't see or hear anything else.


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2! I forgot disclaimers in the first chapter so:

I don't own Once Upon a Time I'm just having some fun.

There's Hook in this but don't worry, this is going to be Swan Queen. Thank you for the follows and reviews. I haven't posted anything here in quite a while, so it was good to see people still reading. Sorry it's a bit short. This has been a hectic weekend.

Emma woke up to yelling. Or at least the harsh whispered version of yelling. She was in her own bed, and while she was sore and exhausted she didn't seem to be any worse for wear from her night out with a demon. She moved to get out of the bed, wincing as the muscles in her back pulled. Ok, maybe she wasn't 100 percent but she could work with what she had.

Opening the door to her bedroom, she could make out the voices more clearly now. "How you thought that was going to help, I have no idea."

"Someone had to save her, that demon was going to kill her."

"That demon was well on it's way to being vanquished. It couldn't touch her until you went rushing in and destroyed her protection spell. And who in the hell brings an unenchanted sword to a magic fight anyway?"

Emma made her way down a few steps then stopped to watch the huddled group closely. Regina and Hook were squared off, staring one another down and from her vantage point it looked like Regina was winning. Her parents were watching the two, Snow with worry, and David with thinly veiled amusement. "It's better than just standing around to watch the show your Majesty, you probably couldn't wait for that demon to get Emma."

Cocking her head Regina took a step toward the pirate. "Emma had it under control ship rat, and if you had stopped to use your rum addled brain you would have realized that too.

Snow finally stepped in. "Ok, that's not important now. What is important is that Emma's ok. Regina, did your magic defeat it? It disappeared so is it gone?"

"I won't know anything for sure until Emma wakes up and I can talk to her. How it got loose in the first place is what I want to know."

"Well I'm awake." Four heads turned to look at her, all showing signs of relief.

Hook was there as she hit the last step reaching out a hand she tried to avoid. "We were worried about you love."

His hand clamped onto her bicep. She figured he was just trying to help, but his grip didn't feel supportive, it felt possesive. She kept walking, shaking her arm lightly to loosen his hold. "I'm fine. Just sore."

Regina was standing back, watching her carefully until she made her way to a stool at the kitchen island. "What happened out there?"

Emma turned to face the woman deciding for now to ignore the hovering pirate. "I don't know. I got to the well, said the incantation, and used the potion..."

"Those ancient incantations are impossible love." Emma scowled.

"Hook's right sweetie, it can take years to master them." Snow was smiling at her with sympathy as she slid a mug of coffee across the counter.

"I didn't say them wrong!" They both took a step back at the snapped words, and she sighed, rubbing at her temples. "Sorry. After I poured in the potion everything was quiet, so I started to leave and behind me that dark cloud just starting rolling out of the well."

Regina looked at her thoughtfully, then nodded. "I have no doubt you said the words correctly Miss Swan, but I would like to know what was in the potion the fairies gave you for that spell. We also need to figure out if it's actually gone. We don't want it just showing up when we're not ready."

Emma shot her a grateful look, getting a small smile in return.

Her mother reached out for her hand, "Emma I didn't mean to insinuate that you had done anything wrong."

She pulled back slowly, slipping off the stool. "It's all right. I'm a screwup, I don't blame you if that's the first thing that came to your mind."

"No, Emma..."

"Look if it's all right with you guys I'm just going to go upstairs and get some more rest. We'll talk later." Her eyes slid to Regina who looked at her with concern before she gave her a nod.

Her father finally stepped forward. "Of course Emma, go get some rest, we can deal with all of this later."

Emma smiled at him and turned to make her way back up the stairs. Shutting the bedroom door behind her she reached back and flipped the lock. She didn't need people checking up on her while she was trying to sleep.

 _Even your family thinks you're a failure Savior._ Emma's breath caught, and she shook her head looking around the room. There was no one there, the room was empty except for her. Feeling her shoulders relax she trudged toward the bed. She really needed to rest.

When her eyes cracked open a few hours later, Emma felt more like herself. Her muscles were still stiff but she knew a hot shower would loosen them up. The apartment was empty when she came down the stairs and she was relieved that she wouldn't have to deal with more questions or apologetic looks. Half an hour later as she stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself she felt ready to take on the world.

Grabbing up her toothbrush, she took a moment to wipe the steam from the mirror, staring at her reflection for a moment. She still looked a little tired, but figured that was normal after facing down a demon in the woods for most of the night. Squeezing out a bit of toothpaste onto her brush, she looked back up at the mirror. Her reflection blinked, then started to smile maliciously.

Emma jumped away from the mirror, dropping the toothbrush. Her back hit the bathroom door, and her eyes flew up only to see her own normal reflection now staring back at her. Shaking hands jerked open the door, and she stumbled out.

Regina sat at her desk flipping through one of her mothers' old books, searching out the ingredients to the potion the fairies had given Emma. It had taken Snow White convincing them to trust Regina to give up the ingredients in the first place, along with a snide comment that the potion was just as ancient as the incantation, and she most likely wouldn't be able to find them in any of the books she had.

But the fairies had no idea what kind of books she had access too, and she prefered to keep it that way. She'd found the incantation easily enough, but these ingredients were eluding her. It instantly made her suspicious. The Blue Fairy hadn't seemed that surprised or worried that a demon might be on the loose, and Regina wasn't fooled by the promise that they were working on their own way to detect, and destroy it, if necessary. They had still warned that Halloween night was the day to worry for, and if the Savior hadn't been successful in warding off the threat early they needed to be ready for what would promise to be an even bigger problem.

Her phone began to ring and she snatched it up, seeing Emma's name flash across the screen as she answered.

"Regina." Emma's voice was distressed, and shaking. "It's still here."

Regina slammed her book closed and stood. "What happened? Where are you?"

"A-at the apartment, in the stairwell. My reflection...it changed."

The woman was headed for the door to her office before Emma finished speaking. "Stay there, I'm on my way, ok, I'm coming."


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry for the little delay! I'm going to try to update every couple of weeks. Thanks for the follows and reviews. Enjoy

Emma watched the apartment door, praying that nothing tried to come out. She hadn't stopped shaking since she'd set down on the stairs. The only person she called was Regina, the others would be worthless to her with this, and she didn't want them to get hurt. So why wasn't she here yet?

 _"She's not coming. You're alone and always will be."_

She shook her head hard trying to shake loose the thought, barely noticing the sound of the door opening downstairs. Heels were thumping up the stairs and she nearly screamed when a hand landed on her shoulder. "Emma?"

The blonde reached up and grabbed Regina's hand squeezing hard. "I thought you weren't coming."

Regina knelt on the stairs in front of her, brow furrowing. "Of course I was coming. Are you all right? What happened?"

The shaking had eased a bit and Emma took a deep breath. "I was just getting out of the shower. I was going to brush my teeth, and I looked up at the mirror." She shuddered, and Regina rubbed her shoulder. "My reflection, just, it wasn't my reflection, or it was but it wasn't me."

"Ok, what did it do?"

"Blinked, then just started grinning or sneering, I looked deranged."

Regina took a moment to look the woman over. Emma was pale and shaking, and she still hadn't let go of her hand. "Did you feel anything? Dark power, or even just a chill. Anything that would indicate something else was there?"

Emma shook her head, "Nothing. Everything was normal, until it wasn't."

Picking herself up off the stairs, Regina tugged at Emma's hand. "We're going in there."

She was met with immediate resistance. "That's not a good idea."

Regina wanted to snap at her, but the look on Emma's face stopped her. There was true fear there. She'd only seen that on Emma's face in Neverland when it looked like they'd lost Henry for good. It put her in instanct protection mode, and instead of the sharp remark on her tongue, she squeezed the hand in hers. "We have to make sure it's safe before your parents or Henry come back, Emma. You know they'll be here soon."

Reluctantly, Emma agreed and the witch turned to the door opening it slowly. Inside it was quiet. The main room was empty and silent. Regina felt nothing odd as she surveyed the room. She raised a hand quickly casting a spell that would reveal anything that was trying to hide it's presence. Feeling Emma's magic react to her own, she looked over her shoulder to see the woman's eyes darting around the apartment.

Her spell revealed nothing, and she squeezed Emma's hand before letting go. "Where are you going?"

"To check the bathroom." Regina stayed beside her until she finally nodded her head, then made her way to the small room down the hall.

 _"She doesn't believe you. None of them will believe you. Just another cry for attention."_

Emma's jaw clenched as she tried to ignore it. Her skin felt like it was crawling and she wanted Regina to come back. They'd always said that in the foster homes and orphanages, 'a cry for attention,' whenever a child acted out, or disobeyed, or became uncontrollable. But sometimes it was just so horrible where you were, 'a cry for attention' was the only thing that could get you out.

She could hear Regina's heels coming back down the hall, dark eyes meeting Emma's as she came around the stairs. "Nothing."

"It happened."

 _"Oh yes, you sound so convincing. Lies, lies."_

Emma groaned, and Regina was coming toward her. "I believe you Emma, but there's nothing here now."

The woman reached out, laying a hand on her arm. The crawling in her skin eased, but her voice was shaking. "I don't think it's gone."

Dark eyes widened. "What do you mean? Emma, you have to talk to me, tell me what's going on."

She eased away from Regina, shaking her head as the crawling returned. _"What's wrong Savior? Can't trust the one you love? Perhaps you should confide in the one that_ wants _to share your bed?"_

Emma turned away from Regina, "I don't know! I can feel it, I can hear it, it's just here!"

Her fist lashed out at the wall next to her smacking hard against the drywall, and as the shock of it ran up her arm she was glad she hadn't been near the brick near the front door.

"Emma!" One of Regina's hands slid around her wrist easing her hand away from the now cracked wall. She slid in front of Emma, making her look at her. "Please. Talk to me."

Keeping her hand wrapped around Emma's wrist she pulled it in against her stomach, and reached up with her free hand laying it on the woman's cheek. It was easily the most intimate gesture she'd ever gotten from Regina. The crawling stopped. She was staring at Regina and she didn't care that woman knew, tears springing up. "I think it's in my head. I don't know what it is, it's not a voice exactly."

Regina's thumb traced her cheekbone. "How long have you felt this?"

"This morning after I went back upstairs to rest, but it got worse after the mirror."

The front door swung open, and Snow's voice bellowed through the apartment. "Emma? We're back."

They both looked up as the entirety of their family plus Hook came busting through the door. Snow had just cleared the door, but came to a stop when she saw them. David and Henry dodged around her, juggling grocery bags, and Hook's face darkened before he made his way toward them.

What's going on?" He not quite gently eased Emma away from Regina, turning her to look at him. "What's happened?"

Emma bit back frustration as he reached his hand up to her chin, trying to mimic the hold Regina had been using to calm her. It felt empty, and possessive. He was staring at her for an answer, his gaze caring and accusing at the same time.

 _"This is love Savior. It's all you can hope for."_

Her spine stiffened, and she opened her mouth to speak, but it was Regina who provided the answer, moving away from them. "The demon was here."

"What? Emma are you all right?" Snow worried eyes darted between them.

Stepping away from Hook, she nodded. "I'm fine."

"Why didn't you call me love?"

 _"Yes, why didn't you call him?"_

She ignored Hook feeling a chill, motioning for Henry who was watching her anxiously. He darted forward wrapping his thin arms around her waist. "I'm glad you're ok Ma."

"I'm ok Henry." She hadn't seen him since the night before, and her ill fated trip to the well. She glanced up to see Regina watching them with a faint smile.

Hook's hand fell on her shoulder, demanding her attention, his voice pained. "Swan, why didn't you call if you were in danger?"

She sighed deeply, letting go of Henry and turning to him. "What were you going to do? I don't need you to save me Hook."

Emma felt that crawling again, an almost itch in her spine that radiated out across her skin. _"Maybe you should just kill him Savior. It would save you the trouble of having to stay with him the rest of your life. To lie with him, to bear his seed."_

Her hand gripped the hem of her shirt tightly, the fabric bunched up in her fist. She was beginning to feel sick to her stomach, the crawling across her skin intesified. "Well is it still here?" Snow was watching all of them with wide eyes. "Is the demon still here?"

Thankfully, Regina answered for her, she wasn't sure she would be able to. "I couldn't detect anything when I got here, but Emma seems to think so."

"So what happened?" David came up beside Snow wrapping an arm around her shoulders. His eyes were scanning the apartment for damage.

Regina looked over at Emma to see if she wanted to go through telling it again, but the woman was staring at the floor not willing to acknowledge the question. Hook was beside her, looking at the blonde with an almost loving gaze. That is when he wasn't taking his time to turn his head and glare at her. She sighed, "There was incident with the bathroom mirror. Emma said her reflection changed, that it appeared to move on it's own."

Hook's hand came up to her chin again, making her look up. "Are you sure you didn't imagine it love?"

Emma pushed his hand away from his face, "I didn't imagine it! Just like I didn't mess up the spell. I'm not some damsel in distress who faints at the first sign of danger, and I wish you would remember that."

He backed away from her with a hurt look on his face, but she didn't care. _"He doesn't believe you. None of them do, even if they say otherwise."_

She growled and she could feel the anger almost radiating around the room. Apparently so could everyone else because they were giving her strange looks. _"They're afraid of you."_

"I need some air." Making her way to the front door, she grabbed her jacket slinging it over her shoulder. "I...I'll be back."

The door slammed before anyone could say anything to stop her.


	4. Chapter 4

It's short, but I got it where I want it. There's not much Swan Queen in this one, but this is and will be a Swan Queen story, no fears. This isn't current canon, because well current canon makes no damn sense and I don't watch the show anymore. Consider this season 3-4. There won't be much mention of Hood at all. That whole situation was just...well dumb and not thought out and Hood was basically an object that stood in the background with an idiot look on his face. Any way here you go!

The sound of the slamming door was the only sound in the apartment for all of minute before Hook whirled toward Regina with a glare. "You want to lose one of those eyes pirate, you'll keep looking this way."

Regina waited until he huffed and looked back toward the door before making her way to Henry, slipping an arm around his shoulders. Hook growled then stomped toward the door, "I'm going after her."

"That would be a bad idea." He turned to Regina trying to tower over her.

"Why is that Your Majesty?" Out of the corner of her eye she saw David perk up, watching closely.

"She doesn't want anyone hovering over her right now. Especially you." She pushed Henry behind her and turned to face the man fully, "At the rate you're going she'll be over the town line by sunrise."

"Have you conveniently forgotten that a demon is after her, or is that falling right into your plans?" The pirate leaned in, leering at her.

"Emma is more than capable of taking care of herself. My plan is to find out why that demon is here, and how to get rid of it." Regina leaned in herself, daring the pirate to come closer.

"Emma is my responsibility, and if I want to go after her I will. You should mind your own business Majesty."

"The only responsibility you're capable of Hook is finding your next shot of rum." She stepped in forcing him back, "And the mother of my son is very much my business."

"We'll see about that."

"That's enough!" Snow came around the island, pushing herself between them, "This isn't helping anything."

Regina backed up allowing herself a smirk in the pirate's direction, before turning her attention to Snow. "Regina, is Emma in any danger?"

Of that Regina wasn't certain, and if she asked herself how she felt about the woman being out by herself right now, she'd have to answer not very good. But Emma was strong, and she could take care of herself despite what the pirate thought and hoped for. "Not anymore than if she were here with us. The demon doesn't seem to be capable of physically hurting her."

Snow seemed to relax a bit. "Ok, then we'll work with that. Did you find out anything about the potion before Emma called?"

The tension in the room eased, and Hook stomped off toward the couch. Regina was glad to see him leave, even if the apartment was essentially one large room. "Not much, I have no idea how they mananged to find the ingredients they claim to have used. There are a few more books I can check. I will find it."

Snow gave her a grateful smile and nodded. She hesitated before she asked her next question. "Is it safe to bring Neal home tonight? We can leave him with Granny if..."

"I can't answer that. The demon doesn't seem to be able to physically manifest itself, at least not yet." Maybe they should go look for Emma after all. Regina turned back to Henry who was watching the door anxiously.

Hook stomped toward the door, throwing it open, "You can stand here and guess all you want your Majesty, I'm going to find Emma and make sure she comes home."

"So you're just going to force her to do something she may not want to do?" Regina was scowling, ready to use some magic on the fool.

"If I must. It's what's best for her."

Snow sighed as the door slammed again. Regina turned back to her, cursing under her breath. "Arrogant, selfish bastard."

Her feet were on the sidewalk before she even realized she'd left the apartment. She pulled her jacket closer around her and started walking. Emma needed some space, she needed to clear her head and figure out if she was going crazy or if something far worse was going on. Picking up her pace she rounded the corner quickly in case someone came after her right away.

 _"Running again Savior? How very appropriate."_

It wasn't running, it was getting some much needed time to think and figure things out. And oh she had so much to figure out. _"Balking at being the pirate's concubine already?"_

Emma shivered and the crawl began under her skin. She rubbed absently at her arm, and kept walking. Hook's voice echoed down the alley calling out for her and she pressed herself against the wall not wanting the company he would surely want to force her into accepting. She didn't want his assurances that she'd messed up but he would make things right again. She hadn't messed up, and she would keep telling herself that because it was the truth. No matter what anyone else thought. _"You will mess it all up eventually. It's what you always do. You should have taken my offer, I would have given you everything. Their trust, their love, a warm body for your bed."_

Feeling nausea roll through her system she listened to see if she'd been found. She couldn't hear Hook anymore, his voice faded as he moved toward the center of town. Emma pushed off the wall and kept going, hating the fact that she had to hide to find time alone. She wasn't a loner, but she did enjoy time to herself. Something that the others, except maybe Regina, didn't seem to understand.

 _"It's easy to enjoy when that's the way you will always end up. You need to take what you want, no matter the consequence. You're weak."_

The crawl raced across her skin. Around her the buildings were disappearing as she neared the docks. She stopped in front of the benches she was all too familiar with and sat down, looking out toward the ocean. Was she weak? Maybe, considering she was considered royalty to this town. In theory she could have anything she wanted, within reason. _"There is no reason when it's power you want. Just take it."_

Scratching at her arm absently, her thoughts became dark. Why shouldn't they give her what she wanted? She'd saved them. Every single one, and now they looked at her to do everything. The Savior. The very thing she didn't want to be. She'd done her duty and broken the curse. That was it, as far as she was concerned she was done. _"You're afraid, weak. The orphan who doesn't know what she wants. The lost girl."_

Emma's hands gripped at the edges of the bench, knuckles white against the force. Not lost, not an orphan. She shook her head roughly. The proof was in front of her. She had a family, parents and a son. She had a...well she had Regina, as unlikely as it seemed when she'd first showed up in this town, she had Regina. And Hook, who was quickly showing that while he may love her, had no idea what that meant, and simply wanted to control her. _"Then control him instead, control them all. Take what you want."_

She felt tears leak out of her eyes. She wanted too much. Wanted to ask for too much. It would never be hers. _"Take it. Asking is for the weak."_

"No." The words struggled past her lips on a sob.

 _"Then settle for what they will give you Savior. Settle for the scraps they'll throw. The pirate will be happy to have you, and the rest can look at you with pity. It's what they expect. You deserve all of it."_

The crawling sensation, that had started as an almost itch down her spine, threatened to consume her. Her skin felt like it was jumping from her bones, making her want to move, to do something to make it stop. _"You can make it stop. Use your power, take what you want."_

Her magic started to gather, almost against her will, flowing freely to her hands as they started to glow. It felt different. Powerful and somehow dark, but delicious in her veins. Her control kicked in at the last minute, barely reigning it in. She gripped at the bench, imagining maybe the metal was bending in her hands, and lowered her head. Breath came in gasps as she fought her own magic back. _"Don't fight it Savior. Let go. Take what you desire. It's yours, everything. You can have it all with just a thought. Make them..."_

New magic assaulted her senses. It was calming and controlled, and she knew it all too well. She almost craved it. Purple smoke appeared and then started fade in her peripheral vision. Emma could have started sobbing, and maybe she did when she heard the almost paniced voice. "Emma!"


	5. Chapter 5

Sorry this took so long! Real life is as always hectic. Thanks for the new reviews and follows.

"Emma!" Regina saw the woman immediately upon materializing and her feet carried her there quickly.

Emma was almost curled in on herself, gripping the edges of the bench hard enough to make her knuckles stark white. She heard a sob escape and knelt in front of Emma, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Emma?"

The blonde head was shaking, but she could feel the tense muscles under her hand relax. "I can't. I can't Regina. It's with me, I know it is. It's in my head."

Beginning to rock on the bench, tears coursed down Emma's cheeks. Regina's stomach turned with dread. "How do you know, Emma? What's happening?"

Sliding her hand down to Emma's arm and using the other to cup her cheek, she finally got the Saviour to look at her. Her eyes were dull and bloodshot. "It's not a voice, it's more like a feeling, a suggestion maybe. My skin crawls."

Regina shifted closer. Regina had been waiting for Emma at the Charming's apartment when a flash of fear, hate and anger had shot through her system. It had hit hard enough that she'd dropped her coffee mug against the kitchen island. She was transporting out of the apartment and to Emma before anyone had been able to say a word. "Is it still with you Emma?"

Emma shook her head a little panicked and her eyes went wide. "No. When you showed up it...What did you do? Are you using magic on me?"

She started to pull away, mistrust clear in her features. Regina let the hand on her face drop but kept a light grip on her arm. "No Emma. You would know if I was using my magic wouldn't you? I wouldn't do that without your knowledge."

Slowly Emma relaxed again, but watched the woman in front of her wary eyes. "Then why don't I feel it now?"

That Regina didn't know. They had a lot more questions than answers and it was well past time they found them. This whole situation was feeling less and less like a mistake and more like a trap. One they'd walked right into. To add another question to the already long list was why? Emma's hands rubbed anxiously against her denim covered thighs and she started to rock again.

On creaking knees the woman stood and moved to sit on the bench beside Emma. She let go of her arm and studied her. "I'm possessed aren't I? Like some bad horror movie?"

"No," Regina shook her head, "a possession would mean you aren't really aware of anything, and the demon has control."

"I almost lost control. Right before you showed up, I almost gave in."

Regina looked at her with questioning brown eyes. "Last night it taunted me when I was in my little salt circle. It offered me power, riches, anything I desired to just to let it go and terrorize the town." Emma had begun to calm down, her hands stilling against her thighs, and Regina sat patiently.

"When I refused it threatened everything I loved. Now, well like I said it's not a voice exactly, but it's tempting me now to use my magic and take what I want. It's almost like it needs me to." Taking a shaky breath Emma's green eyes finally turned to her.

Away from the others and the apartment, with just Regina there she was finding her center again. She could look at it without the distraction of trying to be the Saviour. Trying to be brave. Without the crawling in her skin and the increasingly bizzare and dark suggestions whispered to her brain. But she was afraid, she knew those things would come back, and she didn't know how long she could fight it off.

Regina didn't ask what she was being tempted with, and she was insanely grateful. For now that would stay with her. "It started this morning then?"

"This morning it was more of an uneasiness. I didn't have the feelings, the doubts, at least not until after it was suggested I made some mistake."

"It found a way in." Regina's voice turned thoughtful and her gaze went to the water, her brow furrowing.

"What?" That seemed to shake Regina's attention from the dark waters of the harbor, and she turned back to Emma.

"The assumption that you made some mistake gave it a way to get to you. The way that made you feel, it used that to start to affect you. It's a damn hitchhiker." She stood up taking a few steps away from the bench. "I think I know what this might be."

She turned back to Emma, who was looking at her in a little bit of confusion. "Well what is it?"

Emma stood as well. "I'll need to get to my mother's books to get more information, but I think it's a creature that feeds on its victim's emotions. It gives them power when a person acts on their darkest desires. My mother's books are full of tales about all kinds of them. I was going to study them tonight to get the ingredients to that potion, but I guess there's no time like the present."

The woman was pacing, and her steps took her further away. Emma felt her uneasiness grow again, the crawling starting in her spine, but it wasn't as intense. Not yet. She shuddered not hearing Regina until she called again. "Emma?"

Her head jerked up to see concerned brown eyes studying her. "Sorry, what?"

"Are you all right?" She stepped toward Emma putting her hand on her shoulder again.

The sensation stopped. "It stopped. I was starting to feel it again, and then you touched my arm and it stopped."

Neither wanted to acknowledge what that might mean. "And if I'm not touching you?"

The hand slipped from her shoulder, but she didn't move away. This time Emma paid attention to what she was feeling. She'd been so deliriously grateful before for the woman's presence she hadn't been paying much attention to anything else. There was tingle, but it was easily ignored. Emma nodded shakily. "It's controllable. I can barely feel it."

Regina cocked her head then started stepping away from the other woman pausing every few feet. She was at least fifteen feet away from Emma when the woman gasped sharply, her hand flying up in Regina's direction. She hurried back toward her, saying nothing when her hand was quickly captured.

She watched as Emma took deep breaths, before starting to calm. "That's...interesting."

Regina raised her eyebrow but said nothing for a moment. "We need to get to the vault. We'll find an answer Emma."

"I know. I trust you Regina." The woman said nothing, simply waving her free hand and enveloping them in purple smoke.

Emma watched Regina pulling a large book out of one of the many chests contained in the vault from the surprisingly comfortable stone bench along the wall. This was the first time she'd spent more than a few minutes here. It was bigger than it seemed, but Regina had promised not to go to far, and was sticking to it. She'd used her magic to move the heavy chest closer to the bench and had been rummaging through it for the last few minutes. Finally she straightened and settled back down beside Emma, sitting the heavy tome across their laps.

"Your mother didn't believe in light reading did she?" Emma knew it was lame, but really bad humor was about the only thing she had energy for.

Ignoring it, Regina started flipping through the pages. "My mother didn't believe in doing much of anything for enjoyment."

"Well that sucks." Her phone chimed and she sighed. Apparently Hook had just been informed. She'd called her parents and Henry to let them know she was fine, and where she was. The trio had decided they would bring them dinner from Granny's before they could refuse.

The text was chiding, and the spelling wasn't great, but Emma sent off a quick reply that she was sorry, but she had a lot she was dealing with. Trying to turn her attention back to the book across her lap her phone chimed again. She read it quickly and groaned.

"Something wrong dear?" Regina's attention had been pulled from her reading by the beeping device in Emma's hand.

"It looks like Hook will be joining us as well." They hadn't even discussed how they were going to explain the new developments of the afternoon.

"You don't want to see your pirate?"

"He's not my pirate Regina. I don't think I want him to be either." The dark eyes were gazing at her with that undefined look again, then she shrugged and turned her attention back to the book.

"I'm not the one you should be telling." Regina hadn't looked up from the book this time, turning another page.

"Maybe I need you to know that before he does." She hadn't meant to say that, she really hadn't, so she kept her eyes on the book when the dark head shot up.

Regina opened her mouth to reply. Not that she knew what she should say to that, but her son's voice calling from the stairs stopped her. Henry trotted through with his grandparents and Hook in tow. They were laden with bags and quickly began setting them down on any available surface. She removed the book from their laps and stood, shooting a look at Emma letting her know their conversation was not over. She smirked with satisfaction at the red blooming on her cheeks before turning her attention to her son.

Emma stood as well suddenly realizing she hadn't eaten all day, feeling her stomach start to grumble. Hook headed straight for her, placing a light grip on her arm. "Swan, we need to talk."

"Hook, I haven't eaten all day. I'm starving." But he was tugging at her anyway, pulling her away from the group.

Stopping as far in a corner as he could he turned to her. "Where have been?"

"I was taking a walk Hook, something that I'm old enough to do by myself." His hand tightened on her arm slightly, and a look flashed across his face before he calmed.

"You shouldn't have left without me. I'm here to protect you love."

She almost welcomed the sensation of crawling skin, starting at his grip on her arm and spreading out. Her stomach turned, _Let him protect you Saviour. No one else will._ "I don't need your protection. Again why don't you understand that?"

"That doesn't matter. I say you do."

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Her voice was raised and for the first time the other occupants of the vault noticed they had moved away. Both David and Regina started to step toward them.

"I'm your happy ending Emma. Haven't I done everything to prove that?" Emma tried to remove her arm from his grasp, but he wasn't letting go this time.

"You don't get to just decide your someone's happy ending! Especially if they're not on board with the idea!" Her skin felt like it was rippling across her chest. Her magic burned. "Let go of my arm Hook."

He seemed confused, "What?"

"I think that's a good idea." David's voice was dangerous from where he stood, now openly glaring at the pirate.

His grip loosened but didn't leave her arm. "Maybe we should go somewhere we can talk privately, love." He tried giving her a charming smile.

Her frown slowly transformed into a delighted sneer and her magic answered her call. "Emma no!"

It was Regina, and she could hear her steps headed straight at her, but the damage was done. Her magic flared out, throwing the man across the room, slamming him into the far wall. Hands landed on her shoulders a half second too late.

The urge to just finish the pirate off left and she was shaking. Regina turned her around, "Emma?"

"I just wanted him to let me go." Tears slipped out of bloodshot green eyes. "Oh God. Is he dead?"

Looking over the woman's shoulder, she could see David helping the pirate up none too gently. Turning her attention back to Emma she shook her head. Letting out a gasp of relief she let her head fall to Regina's shoulder. She felt the woman's hand on her back and tried to stay calm.


	6. Chapter 6

I'm so sorry for the long delay! The holidays have me running ragged, and time to write is at a minimum. Thank you all for the new reveiws follws and favorites!

In other circumstances this would have been nice. Regina's hand was on her back and she was pretty sure she had found the most comfortable place to rest her head that she would ever find. But the chaos that had begun to erupt around them, and the frantic grip she had on Regina's suit jacket took away any pleasure she could have pulled from it. Emma's nerves were beginning to fray.

Her grip on Regina was tight, but shaking, her breathing was erratic. Regina's low voice floated across her ear, "It's going to be ok."

Emma felt anything but ok at the moment. She shook her head feeling the woman's fingers press into her back a little. She'd worked with her magic enough to know that what she had felt when she'd thrown Hook wasn't right. The power was familiar, the invisible strength that seemed to flow through her when she cast had become a welcome feeling. It was the lust for more, the desire to crush the man that was foreign. In those few seconds she'd felt joy that she could control him so easily and would have gladly continued.

"What just happened?" Snow skidded to a stop a couple of feet from them watching anxiously. "Emma are you all right?"

She knew her brief moment was over, and she raised her head looking at her mother with blood shot eyes and nodding. She wasn't completely letting go of Regina yet though. She wasn't doing that. Instead she kept one hand firmly wrapped in the expensive fabric of her jacket and then turned to take in the rest of the room.

"What the hell Swan! You could have killed me." A wildly swaying Hook jerked out of David's grip, slapping a hand against the vault's wall to keep his balance. "I just want to help you!"

"Maybe you should find a better way to help." David's eyes were narrowed, "And maybe you should find a better place to do it."

The pirate scowled at him, still trying to shake the dizziness. "I won't leave unless Emma tells me to. You don't control her."

"Neither do you." David crossed his arms and stood between his daughter and the pirate, every muscle screaming he was ready for a fight.

Hook looked like he wanted to respond but Emma cut him off, "Just go Hook."

A dark look turned her way and she tensed. His scowl deepened. "I love you Emma, and you love me, you'll see that soon enough. You just need to get away from the distractions. Come with me. We'll figure this out, we don't need them."

It was her turn to scowl. "They're my family. I do need them. Please just go."

He stared at her for a long moment before turning to stomp up the stairs, throwing an extra glare at Regina. "When you realize you need me love, you know where to find me."

Regina quietly led her back to the stone bench with the watchful eyes of Snow and David on them the whole way. Once she was seated, Emma finally let go of the death grip on the woman's jacket. Henry was standing anxiously, not sure what to do or say. "Mom?"

"It's ok Henry. She'll be ok." The boy's shoulders relaxed and he came forward setting on the bench beside Emma. She looked up at him and smiled.

"Sorry Henry, I didn't want you to see something like that." She wrapped her arm around his thin shoulders pulling him against her side.

"It's ok. You probably should have done that a long time ago."

Regina barely covered a snort, studying them both closely before Emma looked up and gave her a nod. For now she was ok.

"Would someone please tell us what's going on?" She turned her attention to Snow and David.

Snow White was staring at her with a look she'd seen hundreds of times, determined, defiant. Something that even just a year and a curse ago she wanted to crush, but now that urge was gone and she straightened her shoulders. "It's a hitchhiker."

Both of them looked at her confused, and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Last night, when Emma's protection spell was broken, it found a way to latch itself to her."

"So possession?" David was looking at his daughter with concern.

She was going to have to spell this out it seemed. "No. I said hitchiker. It can't control Emma's actions, but it can certainly try to influence them. Wehave to find a way to release it's hold."

Snow took a deep breath, "So that was the demon that influenced her to throw Hook?"

"No, that was me." Emma stood up from the bench, "I don't know how to explain it. It doesn't control me, its encouraging me to do things I normally wouldn't. Trying to break me down." Her voice trailed off.

Regina felt Emma's hand return to grip her jacket, watching Snow's eyes narrow when she saw it. "We have to find a way to kick it out of Emma and defeat it, that's the only way."

David straightened, nodding. "Then we find a way. Simple as that."

Snow looked up from the book in front of blinking to clear her straining eyes. They'd been at it for hours and hadn't come up with much. Her eyes wandered around the vault inevitably landing on her daughter, who was now stretched across teh stone bench with a book in her lap and Henry asleep against her. Long legs were laying over Regina's lap and the woman was saying nothing about it. That alone was enough to make Snow wonder what was really going on.

She watched her daughter's eyes drift closed, and knew it wouldn't be long before she would be asleep as well. Sure enough her head lowered slowly to rest against her son's and her hands went slack. Regina turned her head to stare at them both with a look Snow was sure she'd never seen on the woman's face before dark eyes went back to the pages in front of her.

There was something there and it was big, and Snow either couldn't grasp it or wasn't ready too. She sighed, looking back down at the book on the table. She wasn't sure what she was looking at, only that it was a catalouge of plants and minerals from the old world. Things that wouldn't be available in this realm. She recognized the plant in front of her as one from her mother's garden that had always made her itch. Flipping to the next page she found an entry for another mineral she'd never heard of.

Her eyes scanned the brief description, _"Ceylock is found only rarely, but is considered powerful in unlocking doors..."_

Snow didn't want to unlock doors. She sighed, looking at the rest of page briefly then went on to next.

Regina was having better luck. She'd found what she was looking for at least partially. The illustrations wound around the page, with tight scrawling script woven among them. Most of it she could read, but the rest she was going to have to translate. Which could take hours.

Snow interrupted her thoughts. "We should call it a night."

Regina looked up ready to protest, but glanced at Henry and Emma and reluctantly nodded. She shook one of the legs across her lap, bringing Emma out of her light doze. Blearly green eyes looked at her before scanning the room. "Sorry, didn't mean to fall asleep."

"It's all right. We should get Henry home. I'll take some of the books and keep working."

Emma nodded slowly moving her legs and helping a groggy Henry sit up. Regina stood, stretching a bit. "We'll give you a ride home, Emma. You'll feel better after a good night's rest." Snow was closing her own book and looking at her expectantly.

Emma's face went still with fear, her eyes widening. "No."

"That's not a good idea." Regina shifted a bit closer, not quite touching her. "There are..."

"I need to stay with Regina." Emma blurted it out, never one to be subtle.

Both of her parents stopped and looked at her in confusion. "Emma, what?"

Regina opened her mouth to speak, but was beat again by Emma. "Earlier at the docks the only thing that kept me from burning this town to the ground was Regina. She talked me down. I don't know if it's the magic, or...I just don't know, but I can't hurt anyone when she's close."

"Emma, you're good, you're not going to hurt anyone, you can fight this."

"It's not about being good! I'm human. I wish people would start realizing that."

Snow stared at her for a moment, before finally nodding, but Emma knew that the conversation wasn't over.

Emma sat back against the leather sofa in Regina's study, watching the fireplace and letting out an exhausted sigh. Glancing at the woman beside her, she watched as she arranged the books she brought from the vault, reminding her of college student cramming for finals. Idly she wondered what Regina would have majored in, if she'd gone to college. Probably political science. She chuckled, quickly shooting another look at the woman beside her.

Brown eyes narrowed at her before turning back to her books. Emma stayed on her train of thought. Did the curse give degrees? Surely if it gave people knowledge of a new career it gave them the paperwork? If it did, did Regina have one? She opened her mouth to ask that very question, then thought better of it. Regina had never answered when she'd asked if she watched Buffy.

Shifting to tuck her feet under her, she changed tracks to when they'd first gotten back to the house. It would best be described as awkward. Terribly awkward. There'd been a lot of waiting outside bathroom doors and avoiding eye contact as they tried to make themselves more comfortable for the night. She shivered a bit, wishing it wasn't that awkward between them. Regina had never replied to her remark about Hook earlier either, but she could tell the woman really wanted to. She knew that was another conversation that was waiting she wasn't sure she wanted to have, but it was going to happen.

Regina being the only one who could break through the demon's hold was a very large elephant in the room. Lowering her head to couch arm she stared back into the fire, stretching her legs until they rested almost against her couchmate. Eyes never leaving the book in front of her, Regina shifted back and Emma let her legs slide into the woman's lap.

Regina waited for Emma to get comfortable before she went back to her books, wrapping a hand around the woman's ankle. The texts weren't as hard to translate as she feared but she could it was still going to take a while. Setting back to read the paragraphs she had already translated, she let her attention shift to Emma for a moment. Her eyes were closed and her breath had slowed. Asleep.

That was good. Emma needed to rest because this wasn't going to get easier. Shaking her head slightly, Regina turned back to her notes. They did have a lot to talk about. Her eyes scanned the page, and what she found was disturbing. _"No spell will turn it away. It only grows stronger so that even True Love cannot shield against it's influence. There is only the will of the afflicted to repel it, or be doomed to it's eternal presence."_

Letting out a shaky breath, Regina couldn't bring herself to read the rest. Squeezing the ankle under her hand for a moment, she felt her stomach growing cold. It didn't matter what any of them did. Emma would have to face this alone.


	7. Chapter 7

I'm so sorry! I know I haven't updated in a while. The holidays and work have kept me busy, and it doesn't look like it's going to slow down. Here's the next chapter. A little Swan Queen a little Snowing.

The books were still open on the table when Regina opened her eyes several hours later. She blinked in confusion, looking around her study before she realized why she was there. On the other end of the couch Emma was still asleep, the dark circles under her eyes portraying how restful it actually was. Carefully moving her legs from the tangled heap they'd wound up in, she sat up and glanced at the words she translated last night. She'd only managed to get through about half the text but it had just gotten worse the more she discovered.

A groan from the other end of the couch forced her attention from the pages in front of her and she reached out to gently shake Emma awake. Blood shot green eyes opened slowly, taking her in before the woman stretched and began to sit up. "Morning. What time is it?"

"A little after six."

She watched Emma groggily trying to wake up with a small smile, which she hid quickly when she turned to her. "Did you find anything?"

Her face fell and she turned to the notebook laid out on the table in front of them, tapping at the page with her finger. "Yeah."

Emma gave her a crooked smile. "That bad huh?"

"Well it's not great, but Emma..." She was cut off when Emma held up her hand and shook her head.

"It's all right Regina. Just show me, we'll figure it out."

She handed Emma the notebook, watching carefully as she read over the page. Emma scanned the words feeling her stomach plummet. Alone. It seemed it always came back to her having to do everything that way. She tossed the notebook back on the table and stood walking over to the now extinguished fireplace. "Never get an easy one do I?"

"You won't be alone Emma, and I haven't finished translating all of the text. There could be something we don't know yet." Regina joined her by the fireplace, trying to get the woman to look at her.

"We know that eventually not even you will be able to stop it, or me if I let it take control." She felt Regina shift beside her, a warm hand coming to rest on her shoulder. "Are we ever going to talk about it, or are we just going to go with it?"

"We need to talk about it, but I can't say I'm too overly shocked that it might be true."

Emma relaxed feeling the warmth of Regina's hand soak into her skin. She reached up covering it with her own. "No, me either."

She looked up and gave Regina a small smile. "How am I supposed to defeat something if I can't trust my own mind?"

"You trust me, you trust your family. You trust your heart Emma, it's your greatest ally. You've got more on your side than you think you do, and you need to remember that. I won't let you forget it." Regina gave her shoulder a squeeze, before dropping her hand. "Now we have a son to wake up and get ready for school. Then I suppose we'll need to fill the Charmings in on the situation."

"Oh I can't wait."

Snow and David had their heads together as they read the notebook of translated text. They'd hardly batted an eye when Emma and Regina had walked in and made their way straight up the stairs so Emma could change. Regina had stopped outside the door to her bedroom turning to stare down at them with a raised eyebrow. It would have been funny if it wasn't for the circumstances.

Now they were standing shoulder to shoulder waiting for Emma's parents to finish the translation. Finally the two heads came up and gave each other a look, before turning their attention to the women in front of them. Snow tapped her fingers on the island, "You haven't completed the whole translation?"

"No, but it won't take much longer."

Emma leaned forward on her elbows giving them all a look. "We have to come up with some options."

"We could go back to the fairies. Now that we know what it is that's attacking Emma maybe they would know more."

Regina grunted, throwing her hands up. "The fairies are what got us into this! Continuing to trust them with this is a mistake we can't afford to make."

Emma straightened up, reaching out to grab one of the flailing hands. Regina relaxed, blowing out a frustrated breath. "I'm with Regina on this one. They've been reluctant to help since this happened."

Snow slumped, but nodded. "What about the potion? Do we know anything else about it?"

"The ingredients are obscure, which means they probably used substitutes. Idiotic and dangerous." Emma squeezed the hand she had yet to let go of, giving the woman a grin.

"Well I guess that means more reading. Buffy should have prepared me for this."

Regina was staring at her. "Drop it Emma."

She laughed for the first time in two days, giving the woman's hand another squeeze before slowly letting go to turn back to her parents. "Maybe we don't go to the fairies for help, but we can go and have a look around. They have public gardens don't they? You guys look like you could use a walk."

Slowly realization fell onto their faces, and David was mirroring the grin his daughter was wearing. "You know what, I think you're right."

The public gardens at the convent weren't usually crowded at this time in the morning, and they were mostly alone as they strolled through the rows. It was warm for late October in Maine, and most of the plants had stopped blooming a month ago but it was still a pleasant walk. Snow wrapped her arm through David's and leaned against him as she walked, surveying the few plants that still showed life.

"Do we even know what we're looking for?"

Snow smiled up at her husband, "I would assume it would be anything that doesn't belong here. Several of the ingredients on the list simply aren't available in this world."

"Ah, so we're botanists today."

"Yes. Pretend you're an expert." She rolled her eyes and went back to studying the plants they passed. It was bittersweet to walk along the rows if she really thought about it. It wasn't an exact replica of her mother's gardens, but it was similar enough to remind her of one of her favorite places at the Summer Palace.

So far she hadn't seen anything that jumped out as strange. The herbs and flowers they'd passed either grew in both worlds or this one alone. They turned to head down another row, this one far in the back of the walled garden, and were immediately met by two of the nuns bustling between the planters.

One of them looked up noticing them immediately and started toward them with a nervous smile. "Hello your Majesties. We didn't know anyone else was here."

Snow smiled at the woman. "We both have the day off, and figured we needed a walk."

"How lovely. Unfortunately this part of the garden is temporarily off limits. Several of the planters were damaged in the last storm, and we're in the middle of repairing them."

David smiled at her, bowing his head. "Of course. Sorry to disturb you."

He gently led Snow back toward the garden's entrance, feeling her tense up as they made their way out. "David."

"I know. They're hiding something back there." His voice was quiet as they walked back through the gates.

Snow's voice was determined, when she answered her husband. "Then we're going to find out what it is."


End file.
